T3 India April 2021

GREEN PIECES Concerned plastic plants are inherently environmentally unfriendly? Think again: many bricks in the Botanical Collection are made from plant-based plastic, created from sustainably sourced sugarcane. LEGO BOTANICAL COLLECTION Introducing more greenery into your environment can be an incredible way to help you de-stress, brighten up dull surroundings and boost your mood. But what if you’re about as green-fingered as Dutch elm disease? Well Lego has an unorthodox solution for you: why not build your own plant life? No, they’re not expecting you to be a dab hand at genetic modification – instead the company has released two new sets aimed at helping adults to practice mindfulness and create their dream greenery. The 756-piece Flower Bouquet allows grown-ups to channel their inner Monty Don and artfully arrange vibrant plastic…

Focus on Wearables in Healthcare Fresh from a lockdown, the tech industry is certainly bouncing back with a vengeance and with events going remote, we have been witnessing a surge in launches the last couple of months. Once again, it is that time of the year when we look at hot gadgets in the market. Here we are, with our pick of 75. Cameras remain the most in-demand gadgets in a world dominated by visual content creation and virtual presence. DSLRs are slowly on their way out with interchangeable systems increasingly going mirrorless. We have put together a list of Cracking Cameras you can choose from. The lockdown period has made us more conscious of health and fitness, and wearable healthcare firms are looking at ways to incorporate more sensors…

ASUS ROG PHONE 5 ULTIMATE ₹79,999, rog.asus.com The ROG Phone 5 Ultimate is ASUS’s flagship smartphone released under the ROG Phone 5 series and is built to deliver exceptionally high levels of performance and speed. It features an 18GB LPDDR5 RAM with an internal storage of 512GB. The ROG Phone 5 series is equipped with a large 6.78” FHD+ AMOLED display which offers a superior refresh rate of 144Hz and a touch sampling rate of 300Hz. The display is also HDR10+ certified and provides a maximum brightness of 800 nits. The ROG Phone 5 series runs on the powerful 2.84GHz, 64-bit octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G processor and the Qualcomm Adreno 660 GPU. ASUS has also upgraded the AirTrigger 5 control system which is now integrated with 2 additional physical…

FLIGHT 001 5 IN 1 UNIVERSAL TRAVEL ADAPTER If you’re signing up for a long-distance train journey, there’s a chance you’ll be crossing a couple of borders, so add a flash of colour to your cabin with this stylish adapter. ₹2,900, conranshop.com SKULLCANDY HESH ANC Rumbling trains are no match for Skullcandy’s newest headphones, which have active noise cancellation and a cabin-friendly collapsible design. They’re also super quick to charge – you’ll get three hours of sound with just a 10-minute charge. ₹10,999, skullcandy.co.in PARAVEL PACKING CUBES When you’re confined to a cabin, overstuffed bags can be a recipe for disaster, so minimise the risk of an exploding suitcase by using Paravel’s brilliant Packing Cube set. ₹6,500, net-a-porter.com…

Not so long ago, travel was all about getting from A to B in the fastest time possible, whether this meant flying from London to Sydney without a stopover, bragging about being a passenger on a plane that piggybacked jet streams for a lightning-fast transatlantic crossing, or whizzing from one Japanese city to the next on a sculpture-like bullet train. But it’s hardly surprising that many are predicting a post-pandemic passion for slow travel, and trains are at the forefront of this movement. A classic example has been the growing popularity of Amtrak’s sleeper services, which have chugged their way across America with a no-frills determination for decades. 2021 marks Amtrak’s fiftieth birthday, which means it’s the ideal time to sign up for – or at least book – an…

In 2021, home workouts are the norm and even when gyms reopen, it’s doubtful there will be as many people working out in them as before. For those individuals who prefer exercising in their living rooms, have some dosh to spend and like to look at themselves as they workout, NordicTrack has the perfect product. The carbon steel-framed NordicTrack Vault (approx. ₹1,45,000, nordictrack.com) is an all-in-one ‘smart fitness studio’ and features a sizeable 32-inch HD touchscreen (to stream iFit workouts on) covered by a 60 x 22-inch mirror that’s able to rotate in 360 degrees, meaning that although the unit will most likely be by a wall – where else would you place a huge cabinet? – you can workout anywhere else in the room where the Vault is placed.…